This is The Legal Beat, a weekly music law newsletter from Billboard Pro, bringing you a one-stop cheat sheet of big new cases, landmark decisions and all the fun stuff in between.
This week: A deep dive into Young Thug's Atlanta trial as the gang's case drags on for more than two years with no clear conclusion. Supreme Court ruling in a copyright case filed against Warner Music over a Flo Rida song. Donald Glover Wins Lawsuit Claiming He Stole His Chart Topper 'This Is America'; and many more.
THE BIG STORY: Why Is Young Thug's Trial Taking So Long?
It's been two years since Young Thug was accused of running a violent street gang that terrorized Atlanta. It has been over a year since jury selection began and more than five months since the trial began in earnest. The trial is expected to last until 2025, with around 100 more witnesses yet to testify. And all the while, Young Thug was sitting in jail.
Pitting prosecutors from America's rap capital against one of hip-hop's most influential artists, the Young Thug case was always going to be a great story — not least because it represented a flashpoint in a decades-long debate over the use of rap music in criminal trials. . But as the case drags on for years, critics like Kevin Liles, the CEO of Warner Music Group's 300 Entertainment, say the case has metastasized into something else.
“From the lack of bond to the extraordinary weaponry of creative expression, this case has always been infuriating,” Liles tells Billboard. “Now, as the biggest trial in Georgia's history and without an end, it has also become a farce.”
For the full story, read Jewel Wicker's excellent deep dive into the Young Thug case – including how we got here, expert opinion on the case and what's next.
Other top stories this week…
SCOTUS COPYRIGHT DECISION – The US Supreme Court lined up with a music producer from Florida in a legal battle against Warner Music over a song by rapper Flo Rida, ruling that copyright holders can recover money going back decades. The decision in the case, which the music companies had described as “extremely important”, could encourage more plaintiffs to try their hand at litigating years-old songs.
THIS IS NOT A VIOLATION – Federal Court of Appeal confirmed a decision last year dismissing a lawsuit accusing Donald Glover of ripping off Childish Gambino's chart-topping hit “This Is America” from an earlier song. A rapper named Kidd Wes had claimed that Glover's 2018 Grammy winner was “virtually identical” to a 2016 track called “Made In America,” but a lower court ruled last March that the two tracks were “completely different ».
DUPLICATION CASE 50 CENTS – The rapper sued for defamation against his ex Daphne Joy over her allegations that he raped and physically abused her, calling them a “calculated onslaught” of false allegations designed to destroy his reputation. The rapper claimed that Joy made her statements in retaliation after he moved to take custody of their son — a move he claims he made after a lawsuit against Sean “Diddy” Combs accused Joy of being his “employee sex”.
PORTNOW RAPE CASE SETTLED – An anonymous woman who filed a lawsuit accusing former Recording Academy boss Neil Portnow of rape she moved abruptly to drop her case, citing concern that her real name would be revealed. The move came amid a split with her own lawyers, who told the judge they would withdraw from the case due to “irreconcilable differences” with Portnow's accuser.
ASTROWORLD TRIAL UPDATE – Settlements reached in nine of 10 wrongful-death lawsuits filed against Travis Scott, Live Nation and others over deadly crowd surge at Astroworld 2021 music festival, lawyers revealed at a hearing last week, including the case set for trial this month. The settlements are pending a wrongful-death lawsuit to go to trial — one filed by the family of 9-year-old Ezra Blund — as well as hundreds of lawsuits filed by people who were allegedly injured.
DIDDY WANTS CASE CASE – Sean “Diddy” Combs a federal judge asked to dismiss a lawsuit alleging he and two co-defendants raped a 17-year-old girl in a New York recording studio in 2003 — one of several abuse cases the rapper is currently facing. Combs' lawyers argued it was a “false and egregious claim” filed too late under the law.
BRIAN WILSON MAINTENANCE – A Los Angeles judge has ruled that Beach Boys founder and music promoter Brian Wilson should be placed in custody to manage his personal and medical decisions because of what his doctor calls a “major neurocognitive disorder.” The decision, which came after a petition filed by Wilson's family, appointed two of Wilson's longtime representatives, journalist Jean Sievers and manager LeeAnn Hard, as his conservators.
NBA YOUNGBOY DRUG CHARGES – Judge in Utah bond set at $100,000 for NBA rapper YoungBoy, who faces dozens of new charges involving allegations that he orchestrated a fraudulent prescription business while living under house arrest as he awaited trial on separate federal gun charges.
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